20th annual gathering of innovative no-tillers in St. Louis offers valuable management tips from more than 40 speakers over 4 information-filled days in January 2012.

Behind the theme of "Two Decades Of No-Till Know-How," the 2012 National No-Tillage Conference in St. Louis, Mo., from Jan. 11-14, 2012, promises to deliver the 4 most highly valuable days of learning experiences for cutting-edge farmers seeking to improve their no-till practices.

The just-completed conference program, now available at www.NoTillConference.com, includes 41 speakers from North America and Australia and offers the best no-till management practices and ideas to help no-tillers improve their bottom line. Speakers include no-tillers, agronomists, consultants and university experts teeing up topics ranging from fertility management to precision ag to soil improvement to equipment setups to cover crops and much more — all designed to push up no-till yields with more efficient use of inputs.

The 20th annual event includes 17 general session presentations, 20 classrooms and 60 roundtables. Following is a sample of topics and speakers lined up to present nearly 100 hours of in-depth no-till learning at the Hilton at the Ballpark in downtown St. Louis.

  • "The Ingredients For A Healthy, Productive No-Till Soil" from Ray Archuleta, soils specialist for the National Resources Conservation Service in Greensboro, N.C., will identify practices to improve soil biology and make soils more productive and sustainable.
  • "An In-Depth Look At Money-Saving, Highly Effective Fertility Practices" — The opening-evening general session will feature University of Kentucky fertility specialist Lloyd Murdock; former Kansas State University agronomist Barney Gordon; and Bryan, Ohio, consultant Joe Nester on effective management of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and variable-rate fertility.
  • A general session devoted to managing today's troubles with glyphosate includes retired Purdue University agronomist Don Huber on "Signals That Show A Need To Use Glyphosate More Judiciously" and Southern Illinois University weed specialist Bryan Young on "Alternative Ways To Control Weeds In Today's Glyphosate-Dominated World."
  • Several sessions on cover-cropping benefits, including "Capturing The Nutrient, Environmental Benefits of Cover Crops" by former University of Illinois agronomist Mike Plumer; "Creating Polycultures That Make No-Till More Productive" by Bismarck, N.D. no-tiller Gabe Brown; "The Latest No-Till Cover Crop Revelations" by Holtwood, Pa., no-tiller Steve Groff; and "Caring For A Continuous No-Till Cover-Crop System" by Geff, Ill., no-tiller Terry Taylor.
  • "Technologies From Around The World You Can No-Till With" and "Setting Up That No-Till Drill, Air Seeder For Effective Performance" by no-till consultant Phil Needham of Calhoun, Ky.
  • "Fighting Back The Negative Impacts Of Goss's Wilt" by Oxford, Iowa, crop consultant Amie Bandy and Stockton, Iowa, no-tiller Keith Schlapkohl.
  • "New Precision Tiling Techniques For Profitable No-Till Production" by Iowa State University ag engineer Matt Helmers.
  • "Best Practices Of Both U.S. And Aussie No-Tillers" and "Making No-Till Wheat A Winning Rotational Tool" by Western Australian consultant and no-tilling pioneer Bill Crabtree.
  • "Precision No-Till Planting Techniques That Make Money" by Minster, Ohio, no-tiller and planter specialist Bill Lehmkuhl.
  • "Turning Bt Corn-Stalk Residue Into An Asset" and "No-Tilling Lean And Green To Max Out Profits" by Marion Calmer, onfarm researcher and owner of Calmer Corn Heads at Alpha, Ill.
  • "Addressing Environmental, Economic Risks While No-Tilling" and "Building A Working 'Never-Till' (100% No-Till) System" by Indiana NRCS state agronomist Barry Fisher.

Darrell Bruggink, executive editor and publisher of No-Till Farmer and the organizer of the National No-Tillage Conference, says both experienced no-tillers and farmers considering adopting no-tillage practices will get dozens of practical tips to use in their operations and be challenged to improve their no-till system.

"In addition to the valuable tips and experiences gained from these speakers are the numerous one-on-one networking opportunities with other no-tillers," Bruggink says. "This event empowers no-tillers to walk away from the conference with useful ideas and to be re-energized to start a new production season."

The final 12-page program can be viewed and downloaded at www.NoTillConference.com. Registration is just $279 per person, with a special $252 rate for additional farm or family members.

The National No-Tillage Conference is co-sponsored by No-Till Farmer and 12 industry-leading companies, including Agro-Culture Liquid Fertilizers, Agrotain International, Ag Leader Technology, Bayer CropScience, Case IH, Cover Crop Solutions, Equipment Technologies, Needham Ag Technologies, SFP, Syngenta Crop Protection, Thurston Mfg. (Blu-Jet) and Titan International.